State of Kansas Department of Transportation expresses some funding concerns

On Friday, Kansas Department of Transportation Secretary Deb Miller ordered KDOT staff to develop contingencies to deal with the federal government's plan to delay crucial cash reimbursements to the state starting Monday.

According to a KDOT statement, Kansas and all other states were put on notice by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) earlier Friday that because of the low balance in the federal Highway Trust Fund, reimbursements will be delayed. States were also warned to expect only partial payments (potentially 70 percent) until there is Congressional action to provide a fix for the Highway Trust Fund.

Typically, KDOT bills FHWA $3 million to $7 million per week, the KDOT statement said.

"This is a serious blow to KDOT's cash flow and, as a result, we may not be able to proceed with projects," Miller said.

FHWA announced its plans to delay payments to the states response to a dramatic decline in the balance of the federal Highway Trust Fund, which has fallen to less than $1.4 billion in August as a result of an imbalance between requests and revenue, the KDOT statement said.

United States Transportation Secretary Mary Peters called on Congress to provide immediate short-term relief by passing pending legislation, already approved by the House of Representatives, that would make an additional $8 billion available for the highway trust fund. Congress returns to work next week and will be in session through September. The federal fiscal year ends Sept. 30.

"This not only affects state projects, it will have a dramatic impact on cities and counties that must have federal money to complete much needed projects on local infrastructure," Miller said.

Fuel tax receipts, the main source of revenue for the federal highway program, have been significantly lower than expected for several months. In September, the highway account will take in $2.7 billion but will have reimbursement requests totaling $4.4 billion, according to the American Association of State and Highway Transportation Officials.

State motor fuels tax receipts also have declined this year due to reduced vehicle miles traveled and are down 2.1 percent for the past quarter and six-tenths of a percent over the past year, the KDOT statement said.

"I am grateful that the Kansas Congressional Delegation has supported a fix of the Highway Trust Fund and now it's time for the Senate leadership to take the steps necessary to make it happen," Miller said.